Three Migrants in a Boat (To Say Nothing of the Smuggler)
2019, Petko Dourmana
Multimedia installation and performance
A performance-installation set up as the fictional trip of three migrants and a smuggler on a small rubber boat (dinghy), going upstream river Evros at night. Evros is a perilous part of the main migrant smuggling routes; a liquid portal into Greece and thus the European Union flowing from Bulgaria to Greece and Turkey, the river has the largest number of buried and unidentified migrants in Greece.
Based on sketches, dialogue and jokes from the popular comedy classic “Three Men in a Boat” (to Say Nothing of the Dog) by Jerome K. Jerome, the river Thames becomes river Evros, the 3 friends become desperate migrants, the dog becomes a smuggler, and the leisurely trip becomes a perilous fight for life in the dead of a pitch-dark night.
Up to 9 people equipped with night vision devices (NVDs) can observe the installation without being seen, with infrared projection of river Evros in the background, becoming the scene's border guards.
The artist performs as “the Smuggler”, and in the boat there is a place for actors, volunteers or audiences to perform, to engage in honest confessions about their fears, or to debate about migration in the dark.
A performance-installation set up as the fictional trip of three migrants and a smuggler on a small rubber boat (dinghy), going upstream river Evros at night. Evros is a perilous part of the main migrant smuggling routes; a liquid portal into Greece and thus the European Union flowing from Bulgaria to Greece and Turkey, the river has the largest number of buried and unidentified migrants in Greece.
Based on sketches, dialogue and jokes from the popular comedy classic “Three Men in a Boat” (to Say Nothing of the Dog) by Jerome K. Jerome, the river Thames becomes river Evros, the 3 friends become desperate migrants, the dog becomes a smuggler, and the leisurely trip becomes a perilous fight for life in the dead of a pitch-dark night.
Up to 9 people equipped with night vision devices (NVDs) can observe the installation without being seen, with infrared projection of river Evros in the background, becoming the scene's border guards.
The artist performs as “the Smuggler”, and in the boat there is a place for actors, volunteers or audiences to perform, to engage in honest confessions about their fears, or to debate about migration in the dark.
Petko Dourmana
Gabrovo, Bulgaria
Gabrovo, Bulgaria
Petko Dourmana is a media artist working with technology and new media as well as in the area of art and technology since 1996. His artistic and curatorial projects have been shown at many locations as ZKM Karlsruhe, Chelsea Art Museum and Location One in New York, Transmediale Berlin, ICA London and many others. Education: Art School for Industrial Design, Kazanlak, Sculpture at Academy for Fine Art in Sofia, PhD student in Interface Design at Veliko Tarnovo University. Founder and chairman of InterSpace Association and Cult.bg Foundation based in Sofia, Bulgaria.
Three Migrants in a Boat (To Say Nothing of the Smuggler) was incubated at the Borderline Offensive artistic residency in Leeuwarden, Netherlands in June 2018, part of the Leeuwarden-Fryslân 2018 European Cultural Capital programme.
Three Migrants in a Boat (To Say Nothing of the Smuggler) was incubated at the Borderline Offensive artistic residency in Leeuwarden, Netherlands in June 2018, part of the Leeuwarden-Fryslân 2018 European Cultural Capital programme.
Targeted audience(s)
12+, appropriate for young and adult audiences, but not for very young audiences;
Can be presented temporarily in a gallery, museum and experimental theatre, as well as in the programme of an art/tech festival.
Up to 9 audience members can enter and leave the installation without interruption, as their number is limited by available NVDs.
Can be presented temporarily in a gallery, museum and experimental theatre, as well as in the programme of an art/tech festival.
Up to 9 audience members can enter and leave the installation without interruption, as their number is limited by available NVDs.
Set-up
The installation requires a space that can be darkened completely – a gallery, a museum or theater, optimally 8 × 10 m2, and equipped with power plugs, ceiling projector(s) and white projection screens (or white walls).
All the NVD related-equipment is provided by the artist, and all the technical setup, video and audio editing for the installation are prepared preliminarily, together with a technician that travels with the artist.
2 days for installation, 1 for deinstallation.
Daylight/public space versions of the installation are possible.
All the NVD related-equipment is provided by the artist, and all the technical setup, video and audio editing for the installation are prepared preliminarily, together with a technician that travels with the artist.
2 days for installation, 1 for deinstallation.
Daylight/public space versions of the installation are possible.
Scenography
The scene is set with a rubber dinghy, in an indoor space, with a big panoramic projection of the river banks around the scene, set in infrared, only perceived by someone wearing night vision devices (NVDs).
The artist performs daily for 90 min periods as the “Smuggler”, and engages in interaction with audiences, in several possible ways: directing performance readings of the refugee comedy scenes by actors, volunteers or brave audience members, hosting public debates about migration in the dark, or listening to secret confessions of audience members about their irrational fears about the Other and the phenomenon of migration.
The artist performs daily for 90 min periods as the “Smuggler”, and engages in interaction with audiences, in several possible ways: directing performance readings of the refugee comedy scenes by actors, volunteers or brave audience members, hosting public debates about migration in the dark, or listening to secret confessions of audience members about their irrational fears about the Other and the phenomenon of migration.
Budget
You:
That’s expensive!
Borderline OffenSive:
Costs like accomodation, catering, materials, even travel are variable and depend on what local deals you can make. So in the end your local budget can be higher or lower – the values suggested are indicators, as long as all items are provided. Except for artist remuneration – you can offer more, but never less than the artist's themselves have defined as fair.
You:
What do you greedy warmongers gain from all of this?
Borderline OffenSive:
The budget is calculated for #borderlineoffensive licensed, independent productions – in which you work directly with the artists without our mediation. It is only if you need help with production or project management that we talk about money for ourselves.
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Borderline Offensive 2017-2020 is led by TILLT (SE), together with CZKD (RS), Keunstwurk (NL), House of Humour and Satire (BG), Creative Industry Kosice (SK), Center for Peace Studies (HR), Symbiosis (GR), and in cooperation with MitOst eV (DE), Anadolu Kültür (TK), Zoukak Theatre Association (LB), Ettijahat - Independent Culture (SY) and Ramallah Municipality (PS).
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You can share content from this site for non-commercial purposes by referring to the source.